Tomorrow is October. Where did the past 9 months go? Phew, this year sure did swoosh by quick. Real quick. August and September have been wonderful. The Leo and Virgo months represent mine and Cal's birthdays respectively. Needless to say these are the months that I look forward to every year. Our birthdays this year turned out to be mind blowing. Mostly because it was our first birthdays, after marriage. Here is how we went about it, this year.
August 8th - Mine: Cal had already planned that we needed to be away from the city for my birthday. Since we have had an overdose of beaches, we decided on hills. So tickets to Munnar were booked and our bags were packed. The previous night we boarded our bus and at the stroke of midnight he wished me with a kiss. After I finished accepting a few calls, we both spent the whole night talking until finally we drifted off to sleep just before sun-rise. He woke me up early, with a brilliant smile and a beautiful view. Green mountains encapsulated by the clouds. It was like a dream come true. The air smelt fresh and we reached our destination and made it to our hotel. The view from our window looked like heaven and the warm chill gave me the thrill. Since we were in a new city, I did not expect anything extravagant on this day. I was more than happy that Cal had managed to whisk me away from a stressful routine and all I wanted to do was soak in the ambiance and relax. But I was in for a surprise.
It all started off as a treasure hunt. With chocolates and cards pouring out of my luggage. I had packed our bags, I don't know how and when he had sneaked all those inside. It felt wonderful. After a few more discoveries we freshened up and decided to explore. We had a guide there who had already planned the places to cover for that day. Cal was very clear on one thing. We wanted to go only to a few places and spend good time there. Not rush through a zillion of them. And the guide obliged. We set out to explore the tea gardens and drove up the highest tea mountain. When we were about a thousand feet above sea level, I decided to get off and click a few pictures. The view was fantastic. We were surrounded by mountains and a lake in the center. A thin water fall tricked behind us and the air was cold and warm at the same time. I was just drinking in all of this and tried to capture as many moments as possible.
When I looked back finally, I did not know what to say or do. I stood spellbound. Cal stood there holding a cake with a bright pink candle. The guide was grinning from ear to ear, and left for a walk to give us some privacy. How on earth Cal had managed to pull this off I don't know. So, I entered my 27th year, by cutting my birthday cake at about a thousand feet about sea level, surrounded by intoxicating nature holding the hands of the man I love. Nothing ever would come close to this. Ever. At that moment I fell in love with him a thousand times more and I knew that I had married the right man. As I'm writing this, I feel the rush within me. I am unable to find words that would do justice to that moment. It just remains as my favorite memory etched in my heart forever.
Cal promised that the next year shall be much better than this. Don't I have the best husband in the world?
September 15th - Cal: Unfortunately for me, September was the toughest month at work. With a project release on the 13th, I did not have any time to plan anything, out of the city. Or anything big for that matter. It hurt me to the core. So, as and when I found time in between I went to stores to buy things for him. I believe in personalized gifts. So even if I buy cards, I buy them with minimal writing. I write my own poems and wordings in them. This time I even managed to get a tiny bottle with a personalized message inside. So, I now had these things and did not know where to hide them. The thing is that I have an extremely supportive and understanding husband who helps me with every tiny chore. So he knew all the areas of my cupboard too. Somehow I managed to hide to hide them somewhere. No way I'm saying where, cos I know he will read it and the next year I would have to struggle again. The rest of the gifts were purchased thanks to online shopping. My mother in law and brother in law collected and hid them. I would not have been able to pull this off without their support.
The day before his birthday was a Saturday and he was at work. So all my other planning had to be done then. I could have easily got a cake made for him from outside. But like I said before I always like a personalized touch. I made a two tired vanilla cake with fresh chocolate butter icing and sugar pops. His eyes popped out the minute he saw it. That was exactly what I was looking for. I also made some beautiful chocolate truffles and he devoured them with joy. It was hard to believe that he was turning 29. He looked like a 9 year old with chocolate smeared all over his face. At 12 am, we cut the cake and it tasted really good. He was a proud husband that day.
Once we woke up, I took him to a Ayush. An ayurvedic massage center. He had been over worked for about five months and I wanted him to de-stress. The smile on his face once he came back from the massage still remains fresh in my mind. He looked relaxed. Very fresh. Later, we set out to our most favorite place. The place where our love life started. We spoke at length and refreshed our memories. It was a brilliant day. He couldn't stop thanking me for it. When I told him that we were going to the Hyatt for dinner, he lost his mind. He thought I was joking, I clearly wasn't. I had already booked three days in advance. So, the day ended with a glass of wine and a yummy five star dinner. Cal was a happy man and me a satisfied wife. With the little amount of time I had, I some how had managed to make him feel like the most important person in the world.
Having said all this, Cal and I never find solace in materialistic things. For the outside world, it is about the expensive gifts and the posh dinner, but for us it was about being with each other. We do exchange gifts, but thoughtful and sentimental ones. Probably something we wanted for a long time, but couldn't afford it then. Or something small that was unavailable. Its all about remembering those small wishes and expectations of the partner. The cake I made for Cal was his favorite gift amongst all the other extravagant purchases I had made. See, its the emotion behind a gift that counts. Big or small, doesn't matter. No one else can help you with that. It all depends on the love and understanding that you share with your partner.
And that is the reason why Cal is my soul mate.
~ Soumya
This is such an "awwww" post. So thoughtful and loving you both are. Totally awed by the beauty of the place and yes I m big fan of personalized gifts. I always try to give it a personal touch to the gifts I give. Sometimes small things are so special. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Maith :)
DeleteSmall things cause big feelings is my belief :)
Your Cal is one amazing guy! Although mine doesn't know how to buy gifts or throw in a surprise, it is the sweetness in small gestures that make these men so lovable. Here's hoping each year is better than the last :)
ReplyDeleteSmall gestures mean a lot. That's all anybody needs.
DeleteThanks darling! :)
AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW. Seriously. This is such a cute post. and omg are those the pictures of the view from your window? totally awesome. Hills. <3 Post more pictures. and I would like to see that cake. Post pictures of the cake too. Stay happy forever. :) and I love the idea of the message in a bottle. It is one of the things I like most.
ReplyDeleteI shall post more pictures soon.
DeleteThanks :)
Ahaaa!!! Both of you are sooooo creative. Undoubtedly, the cutest couple I know.
ReplyDeleteGod bless! :*
Awww. Best. Compliment. Ever.
DeleteThanks love <3
Both the experiences are mind-blowingly awesome. You guys are really lucky to have found each other. You guys live fairy tales as your life and may you continue to do so. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Keirthana :)
DeleteAdorable! I love personalizing gifts :D
ReplyDeleteMay you have many, many more occasions to celebrate! Cheers!
Thank you so much PeaBee :)
DeleteYOU BOTH ARE BLESSED......with each other!! and the pictures are adorable.. Trust me LEO when I say this....you deserve it all!!! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you my lovely Red :)
DeleteAww!! Such a nice and sweet post..
ReplyDelete(I just made the connection that you are the same soumya who writes awesome poems in tamarind rice.. :) :) )
Awesome or not I'm that very Soumya :)
DeleteThank you so much.
I hate to do it, but what the hell, Awwwwwwwwwwwww. :P
ReplyDeleteMay the happiness prevail for many years to come. And a belated birthday wishes to Cal. :-)
Hehehehe Thanks :)
DeleteSuch a sweet post. Belated happy birthday! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Pria! :)
DeleteAw this is so cute! All you really need is love
ReplyDeleteHappy Belated birthday to both of you!
Thank you so much and welcome to my space :)
DeleteAnd here I am swooning after reading this, you two are like a beautiful match there :D
ReplyDeleteKeep it up!
Cheers,
Blasphemous Aesthete
Thank you BA! :)
Deletewhat chance - I'm going to Kerala this winter too.
ReplyDeleteGood for you. Have fun :)
Delete